A/N: Alright, after countless hours of searching and deciding, I'm gonna try an attempt to write my FIRST Shaman King fic. I don't know all THAT much about it unfortunately, but I decided that I better write the fic down before I start losing interest in it. So, I apologize if not everything is correct, which is why I'm not gonna write about the Shaman Fight or any other messy details that I do not have a lot of information on. Also, some of the characters may be OOC, because like I said, I only know how the main characters act, and as for the others, I can only judge how they act by how others describe them in fics, and looking at pictures. So...sorry if it isn't exactly correct...^_^U
Disclaimer: I don't own Shaman King or any of its characters, but I do own the plot...I think...
This fic is dedicated to Kitsune Asakura because it was her who inspired me to write this fic (and got me into the whole Ren/Pilica thing), lugiamania, because you're sucha cool person and author, and chibicherry, because you're my friend and a good aritist AND an awsome author as well!
Because the Sky is There
By TFRiD Queen A.K.A. Celebistar*
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Raven-black feathers were falling from the sky, as if the sky had turned black.
Huh...where...where am I?
There wasn't any visible floor or sky as far as the boy could see. All he could see was black feathers falling like sakura blossoms.
What the heck is this place?! Am I dreaming or something?
As if to answer his question, he suddenly felt a sharp pain in his shoulders. It was like something was alive in there, trying to force its way out, by shoving, shoving and shoving, until his broke through his skin and a spray of blood came out with it. He tried to scream, but his mouth made no sound. They grew and grew out his back, until he thought he was going to die from the pain.
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Tao Ren sat up. He gasped for air, remembering the dream. He sighed, then buried his head in his hands. It was just a dream...nothing to get worked up over... This was the third time in the past week that he had the same dream...it all had to be connected somehow. Either that, or he was having some serious issues...
He slipped under his covers again, and tried to go back to sleep.
(A/N: I really dunno if Bason calls Ren something different, so I'm just gonna make it up-sorry about that)
Master Ren? Is something wrong? You were tossing and turning in you sleep the whole time.
Ren knew that voice. It was Bason, and from the sound of his voice, he had just seen his whole sequence. Great. Just great.
No Bason, nothing's wrong...I, I just had another dream. Nothing that you should be concerned about. Ren quickly lied. If Bason knew, then he would surely tell Jun, his sister, and then she would make a big fuss and...well, he didn't want to think about those things now. He sank under his covers, as sort of indication to Bason that he didn't want to be bothered anymore.
Bason frowned, but he quietly exited the room anyways. Ren had been acting weird for the past week. It seemed that just about every night he would be having some kind of dream, and then wake up from it like it was a hellish nightmare. He sighed, then left Ren to sleep.
As he tried to sleep, Ren could have sworn he felt something moving underneath his shoulder blades. His heart beat faster, and his breath quickened. Then the feeling disappeared as fast as it had come. He stayed frozen for a second more, trying to see if that was really just his imagination from being too paranoid or had it really happened. Eventually, sleep got the better of him, and he dismissed it as a figment of his imagination.
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the alarm clock abruptly stopped ringing after its owner grabbed it and hurled it against the wall, where it smashed to bits.
REEEENNN!!!!! IF YOUR ALARM CLOCK IS BROKEN, YOU'RE GETTING YOURSELF A NEW ONE THIS TIIME!! a voice from across the hall yelled.
Ren groaned, and shoved his head under his pillow. It was 6:45AM god dammit, school didn't start for another 45 minutes or so, and all he wanted to do was sleep. He hadn't gotten a lot or sleep last night, or the night before that. Hell, practically the whole week had gone by with him tossing and turning. His body hurt and ached, especially his shoulders, not to mention he had a killer headache.
Ren! Get up, or you're gonna be late for school and it won't be my fault! Jun yelled from her room.
Ren ignored her. It was Friday, he wasn't feeling good, and he could care less if he was late. Even if he had never missed a day or been late before.
Tao Ren! I'm warning you, if you're not coming out in 5 seconds, I swear I'll break down your door! 5, 4, 3,
He ignored her still.
2, 1, OKAY MISTER, YOU'RE DEAD! Jun cried as she stormed into his room. Just what do you think you're doing, lying her in- she stopped yelling when she noticed that his face seemed a bit pale. Ren, are you okay? You look kinda pale... she pressed his hand to his forehead. Hmm, you seem kinda warm, but...do you want to go to school today? she asked gently, as if her personality had done a 180° flip.
Ren thought about this. Sure, he wasn't feeling well, and it WAS Friday after all, however, if he missed a day of school, his would get worried, and then they would probably all troop over to his house, see him, tell him what homework was...ugh, he couldn't stand that. He decided to go school.
No...I guess I'm just tired. I'll go to school today. he replied slowly as he got out of bed and dragged himself towards the bathroom.
Are you sure Ren, you seem kinda- Jun was cut off as her brother slammed the bathroom door in her face. Sheesh, a no' would've been fine... she complained to herself as she walked off.
At breakfast, Ren had no appetite whatsoever. Jun grew worried, this was unlike him, but she let it go. He seemed to be struggling with his own problems right now.
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Birds chirped and the sun shined brightly, and it would've been a perfect day before the weekend except for the fact that Ren was in a bad mood and had a glare so cold that even the birds stopped their songs when he passed. Girls jumped out of the way and guys just stayed to one side, no one dared to mess with the Chinese Shaman. Ren trudged slowly to his first class of the day, English. Great, just great, now I have to listen to Taron-sensei and his boring lessons first thing in the morning. he thought to himself sarcastically. He walked to his desk, slammed his backpack onto the desktop, and sat down roughly. His schoolmates scooted just a little bit further away from him.
Now class, as you can see here how parallel structure works... Taron-sensei's boring theories about English grammar droned on and on. Ren wasn't listening, nor was he paying attention to what was being written on the bored. Screw English, he could always catch up later. What he wanted to do most now was sleep...and his head nodded a little, but he caught himself. He forced himself to stay awake, but it wasn't working. The sunshine was warm, he was tired, and before he knew what was happening, he had fallen asleep.
The black feathery world was back again. He cursed, this would be the fourth time this week he had the same dream. What did all of it mean anyway, it was pretty pointless in his opinion. Then he felt it. That same feeling he had last night, like something was trying to get out. He squirmed and tried to hold it back with all his strength, but the burst out, sending his mind to a realm of pain. Through his suffering, he heard his name being called...
Tao Ren...
Huh? Who's that...
Hang on, can't you see that I'm in pain here?!
TAO REN!
Ren's head snapped up, waking him out of his dream like state and directly into the face of Taron-sensei. He gasped.
Welcome back Mr. Tao, the lesson is over. Taron-sensei emphasized the last part of his sentence. The class snickered behind him. Ren felt his face burn with embarrassment.
My apologies sensei, it won't happen again. he apologized, his cheeks still red.
Well it better not, or next time it's off to the principle's office! Taron-sensei said harshly.
Yes sensei. Ren mumbled.
Very well, class is dismissed. Oh, and Mr. Tao, I suggest that you get your notes from someone so you won't fail tomorrow's test. Taron called after Ren as he left. Ren froze in his tracks. Damn! Why did I have to fall asleep anyway?! Oh well, let's see who I can borrow notes from...Max? No, I don't know him that well...Takao? Hell no, he's such an idiot...who else...wait, there's always Horohoro's sister, Pilica... he sighed. Oh well, she was better than anyone else, plus she was the easiest to contact. With that in mind, he slowly walked on to second period.
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Ren walked swiftly through the halls, with only 3 minutes remaining to get to math. Ugh, if there was anything worse than English, then it had to be math. Not that the class was hard, but it was so boring, not to mention the teacher was too nice and the whole class went wild. Oh well. Maybe he could study during that period.
Come on Takao, we're gonna be late!
Hiromi, you know as well as I do that I find math extremely boooring, right?
Ren watched as Hiromi Tachibana practically dragged her boyfriend Takao Kinomiya into the classroom. He shook his head and sighed. This world had too many weirdoes for him to handle.
Now class, please turn to- Ms. Mitsuya said but was rudely interrupted by a paper airplane flying into her face. She screeched and the whole class minus Ren started laughing.
Good one Carlos! some students cheered when Ms. Mitsuya started crying silently because the class never behaved. Shaking his head in disgust, Ren opened his textbook and started reading. The only reason he wasn't failing this class was because he actually studied, unlike some of the other students in the class. Carlos, on the other hand, laughed and acted like he was king of the world. More like king of the idiots. Ren thought.
For the rest of the period, the class went wild, as usual, and by the time the bell rang signaling that it was recess, Ren had practically finished the textbook. He copied down the homework, although it was useless, Ms. Mitsuya rarely checked it. But hey, it gave him something to do in his other classes.
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BRRRRRRRRIIIIIIIIIIIIIIINNNNNNNNNGG! The bell rang, the last one of the day. Finally, school was over. Ren gathered up his stuff, slung his backpack over one shoulder, and walked home. He had enough of this hellhole for the day, and it wouldn't have been so bad if he was feeling so tired. Still in a bad mood, Ren tossed his backpack onto a chair by the door, not caring when it missed and slammed into the wall making the house shake. He heard Jun's voice yelling at him that the wall had better not have a hole in it, or he was going to be in big trouble. Walking to his room, Ren slammed his door and flopped down his bed, exhausted. Funny, it wasn't as if he had done anything strenuous today. Yet why did he feel like he just trained nonstop for 3 hours? Tiredly he grabbed a pillow and laid his head down on it. It was Friday after all, it wouldn't hurt to take a little nap...he'd be up before dinner anyway. Within 3 minutes he was fast asleep.
Jun walked swiftly towards her brother's room. It wasn't like him to be so moody. Or was it? She shrugged it off. Might as well check on what he was doing. When she got to his room, she was surprised to see his door closed. Ren didn't close his door often, unless he wanted privacy or was sleeping. The door was always open to let air in. She quietly opened it, only to find Ren sleeping peacefully on his bed. She smiled, he was so adorable when he slept. Gently, she pulled a blanket over him, and quietly exited the room.
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This time the sky was blood red. Feathers fell again. Besides the sky, nothing else was different. Ren growled, he was seriously getting pissed off about this dream. He could move, sure, what good did that do him? As he brooded, he felt movement under his shoulder blades. Oh no, not this again. He gritted his teeth as he felt the pain erupt. They didn't waste anytime this time, oozing slowing out of his back while bring a river of blood along with them. His blood. Ren clenched his fists and tried to ignore it. But it was impossible, since they were ripping out of his back. The pain grew until it he was forced onto his hands and knees, panting. Screaming was useless, he had found out earlier that his voice didn't work here. And then his mind went blank.
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Ren woke up, his chest heaving and his clothes and sheets wet with sweat. He waited for a few minutes, catching his breath, when he felt the little stabbing pain in his back. It wasn't that bad, more of an annoyance than trouble, however it was stronger than last time. He concentrated hard, and the feeling went away. He heaved a sigh of relief. They were gone, for now anyway. But soon, he knew that he wouldn't be able to hold back for much longer. Suddenly he realized that his room was dark. Just what was the time anyway? He reached for his clock, then remembered that he had smashed it this morning. Kicking off his blankets, he opened his door and went into the dining room to find Jun.
Oh hey, you're finally up. I was going to check on you ya know. Jun greeted as Ren walked in.
came the reply.
Really? You didn't really eat anything this morning either. Are you feeling okay?
Well, I'm not. And what time is it anyway? Ren snapped. He hadn't meant to, but he wasn't in a good mood right now.
It's 7:30pm. Why?
Ren froze. 7:30?!?! He had slept from 4:00pm all the way till now?! That wasn't like him, to take a nap. No reason, just curious.
Uh huh. Jun didn't believe her brother, but from the looks of things, he wasn't going to tell her anything anytime soon. She cleared the table, then went to her room.
Meanwhile, Ren was already back in his room, thinking. Why wasn't he hungry anyway? Normally, he would've been starving at this point, but he felt nothing...just fatigue. He felt like he could just lay down and sleep for a century. It was then Bason entered the room.
Master Ren?
Um, isn't it time?
Time for what?
Time for what? Is Master Ren not thinking clearly?! Bason thought.
Training for the Shaman Fight? he answered, hoping that Ren would give him a normal answer.
Ren mentally slapped himself. Of course, how could he forget?! Now he got Bason suspicious. His mind was willing to, but not his body. The very thought of training suddenly made him feel very tired.
Not now Bason, I...don't feel all that...well. Ren replied.
Are you alright? Should I get Jun? Bason asked worriedly.
NO! I mean, no, I'm not sick or anything! Jun doesn't need to get involved. Ren snapped angrily at Bason. Bason flinched, Ren almost never snapped. He nodded and floated nervously out of the room. Half of him wanted to tell Jun, but the other half wanted him to obey Ren. His loyalty won over his worries however, and he shook it off. Perhaps all Ren needed as a good night's sleep, seeing as he hadn't been getting any lately.
Ren started into space, feeling a little guilty that he snapped at Bason. God what was going on with him anyway, his temper was so short today. He could feel a huge migraine coming on, and seeing as how it was already dark, he slipped off his shirt and pants and went to bed. Sleep never felt so good.
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A/N: Ah, finally finished the first chapter! Hey, sorry if it's OOC or not everything is correct, cuz I am not a Shaman King genius. -_-U Confusing, no? Well, I tried not to make it too confusing, otherwise no one would enjoy it. Those are not creatures, just to let you know. I hope the dream sequence and stuff wasn't too weird, I feel scared writing in a section I don't know too well for the first time. _U So...I really hope that you guys will enjoy it, the romance stuff will come later, don't worry! No yaoi or yuri though, sorry for those who like it. BTW, I know it's kinda early to be holding a contest', but I feel like it. Okay, whoever is the first to correctly guess which manga/anime Miss Mitsuya is from will get to make a cameo appearance in one of the later chapters. Stupid I know, but I just wanna see if anybody knows. ^_^U And no lugiamania, you can't guess cuz I already told you.
-TFRiD Queen a.ka. Celebistar*
